ABC Revs Up for 45th Straight Indy 500

by Dave Cohen

ABC will telecast its 45th consecutive Indianapolis 500 on Sunday May 24 at noon ET. ESPN on ABC’s live HD coverage will feature 59 cameras, including a 360-degree-rotating onboard camera mounted behind the driver on multiple cars. The telecast will also feature Track Cam, an HD camera running on a cable above pit road and above the front stretch that can move at more than 80 mph.

All 33 cars participating in the race will carry GPS boxes for the Sportvision RaceFX system to provide telemetry and pointers to help identify the cars for viewers. ESPN will also use a radio-replay system that can record, play back, and edit radios from any of the 33 drivers.

Marty Reid will be the lap-by-lap announcer, joined in the booth by former IndyCar Series driver Scott Goodyear and 1998 Indianapolis 500 winner Eddie Cheever as analysts. Jack Arute, Jamie Little, Brienne Pedigo, and Vince Welch will report from the pits, and Brent Musburger will host.

Spanish-language service ESPN Deportes will cover the Indy 500 via SportsCenter and RPM Semanal, the network’s first news and information program aired completely online on ESPNdeportes.com.

ESPN Classic will air a marathon of classic Indianapolis 500 races — SportsCentury: Al Unser Sr., followed by the 1987, 1992, 2005, 2007, and 2008 races — starting Saturday May 23 at 1 p.m. ET.

Online, senior motorsports writer Terry Blount will lead ESPN.com’s team, which also includes IndyCar correspondent John Oreovicz and motorsports correspondent John Schwarb. And anchor Marty Reid and analysts Goodyear and Cheever will provide exclusive digital coverage by Cheever’s frequent ESPN.com contribution, “Leave It to Cheever.”

ESPN Radio will fire up its engines with Saturday RaceDay at 6 a.m. ET, providing one hour of news, previews, and analysis.

Finally, outside the U.S., ESPN International’s networks and syndication of Indy 500 will reach 213 countries and territories and more than 292 million households. And U.S. troops serving overseas and on Navy vessels around the world can see the race, thanks to a broadcast agreement between ESPN and the American Forces Network.